Category Archives: Belize

In a natural reserve of Central America, Francis Ford Coppola has created a place that exude more magic than all his Hollywood cinematographic creations. Surrounded by almost 500 square kilometers of pristine jungle, the Blancaneaux Lodge preserves water and energy and uses natural materials for its cabanas.

Francis Ford Coppola is of course internationally known for his movies and particularly for Apocalypse Now, covered with awards. It is by the way because of (or thanks to) this movie that he became an hotelier. He created Blancaneaux Lodgein the jungle of Belize as he was trying to create a paradise in the jungle that resembled the hotel in which his crew stayed in during the shooting of Apocalypse Now in the Philippines.

Francis Ford Coppola had purchased an abandoned property in the remote highlands of western Cayo district, Belize. He opened Blancaneaux Lodge in 1993, without destroying the natural beauty in the process. The lodge cottages are private, with huge decks and mesh windows letting the night air circulate.

The Great Blue Hole is geographical phenomenon situated 60 miles off the mainland of Belize. There are numerous blue holes around the world but none as stunning as this one. The whole is part of the Lighthouse Reef System and lies approximately 60 miles off the mainland out of Belize City. The centre of the hole is very large, almost perfect circular hole, approximately one quarter of mile (4km across). Inside the hole the water is 480 feet (145 m) deep.

The hotelier Francis Ford Coppola is generally better known for his films, and for a thriving sideline in Northern California wines. But his foray into the hospitality sector in his beloved Belize can be counted as one of his hits. After winning praise for his rustic, elegant Blancaneaux Lodge, built in 1993, he added to the empire with Turtle Inn, a wonderfully quirky, environmentally friendly beach hotel on an unspoiled patch of rainforested Caribbean coastal paradise.